66 Fire Pit and Outdoor Fireplace Ideas

After the origin of controlled fire — ohh, couple-a-four-hundred-thousand years ago — you have to believe the creation of the fire pit soon followed. And here you sit with an empty backyard, save for the gas grill on your patio.

You’ve had plenty of time to stop thinking about a fire pit and start building a fire pit. Lucky for you, fire pit design has evolved in extraordinary directions and you can get as simple or as fancy as your time and budget allow.

Here at DIY, we tend to gravitate toward the more dynamic and dramatic fire pits and outdoor fireplaces.

Keep in mind that fire pits don’t take up a lot of space, and combined with their functionality, can be featured almost anywhere in unlimited shapes and sizes. Some of the fire pits below are straight out of the box with minimal-to-zero installation. Just be sure to follow the manufacturer’s instructions to the letter and know your local codes governing fire pits — safety first!

Of course, setting up a store-bought fire pit isn’t nearly as fun or satisfying as installing your own. Check out the video below with complete step-by-step — from the first mark to finishing touches — for building a circular fieldstone fire pit, and browse more fire pit how-to videos if you’re looking for a different style. Imagine being done in a day and relaxing by your fire as fall leaves flutter to the ground. Aah — those first fire-starters just didn’t know how to chill like this.

8 Responses

These designs are really cool. The fire pits/fireplaces actually changes the atmosphere all around. I really have some more cool designs to show you. You can check out those cool indoor/outdoor fireplace at StarfireDirect.com

Ever considered using a bio-ethanol burner to build a pit? They burn clean, green, no carcinogens, no trees being destroyed, no gas. They are great options if you want a fire pit that is innovative, cost effective, "green" and easily designed around your own ideas. Check out the burners from Bio-Blaze. http://www.bio-blaze-usa.com I designed one using their Bloc 23 1/2" and it is great!

Great post! I really enjoyed all the different types of pits and fireplaces, they make the outdoors look so sophisticated! Made me look around a little more at cool ideas. Have you seen those cool indoor/outdoor fireplace… idea number 67? Harman Stoves has some cool ones